


Rose and Vanilla

by DerekHaleGirl97



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Always Female Stiles Stilinski, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dead Sheriff Stilinski, Derek Hale & Stiles Stilinski are the Same Age, Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski are Soulmates, F/M, Female Stiles Stilinski, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, POV Derek Hale, Past Braeden/Derek Hale, Past Jennifer Blake/Derek Hale, Past Kate Argent/Derek Hale, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-17
Updated: 2019-05-17
Packaged: 2020-03-06 18:57:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18857101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DerekHaleGirl97/pseuds/DerekHaleGirl97
Summary: Derek has had some bad luck with finding his soulmate. He just didn't realize they were right there the whole time.





	Rose and Vanilla

**Author's Note:**

> I read a soulmate thing, liked it, and wrote this because of it. I don't know anymore. Hope you like and enjoy this, whatever this is.

Soulmates are a thing, but they don’t happen often as people like. Still, everyone has a soulmate (even if they never meet them). 

How it works is there is something about a person that gets stuck on someone. Whether it’d be a facial feature or something they’re into- that’s the first indicator. The second is having the ability to enjoy something together, it doesn’t have to be one specific thing, just something that makes them realize it’s something they want to do together. The final thing is knowing that they are. It can’t be an ‘in the moment’ feeling. It has to come naturally, like suddenly realizing how strange your own name sounds. No one ever realizes it until it suddenly hits them like a ton of bricks. Once they realize it, their partner's name appears on the wrist of their dominant hand. That’s when they will find their soulmate. 

For Derek, that doesn’t seem to be the case. 

There is a chance that someone would believe they were soulmates, but Derek never had Kate’s name appear on his right arm after dating their entire high school career. When it didn’t happen, Kate just shrugged and left and it hurt. After four years, Derek would think they had something from all the time they spent together. And she just fucking leaves him the day before graduation because they weren’t soulmates.

“Kate’s a bitch,” Stiles, Derek’s life long best friend, states while hanging upside down on his bed. They do that sometimes, even though it feels weird and makes their head hurt later, it was something they never grew out of when they were kids.

“As you’ve said for the 6,789th time,” Derek replies, his brooding face looking like a very happy smile upside down.

“She’s still a bitch,” Stiles smacks her lips. “Seriously, what did you see in her? Allison, sure I can understand that. Everybody loves Allison, but Kate? Really?”

Derek shrugged, “What can I say? She was pretty cool at the beginning.”

“If you define cool as being a total, narcissistic bitch,” Stiles was running her tongue on her lip. One of her taste buds was swelled and it felt weird rubbing against her lip, but oddly soothing. To Derek, it looked like she was sticking her tongue out. 

“Well, she’s out of our lives for good,” Derek moves to get up, using his bedpost to anchor himself up.

“Good riddance,” Stiles agreed, holding her hand out so Derek can help her. They both stopped a second for the blood to rush out of their heads. “She ruined Prom for me, I’ll never forgive you for that.”

“There’s still the big party after graduation,” Derek reminded her, “Maybe Theo will give you another chance.”

Stiles made a face, “No, I hate him now. That dumb fucker listened to Kate, so I don’t want his scrawny ass.”

“Yeah, fuck him. Want popcorn?”

“Hell yeah! We’re still watching Wonder Woman, whether you like it or not.”

Derek rolled his eyes, not out of annoyance, “Yeah, yeah. Come on, let’s get drinks too.”

Stiles followed Derek to the kitchen where they got the popcorn (really it’s kettle corn, but Derek won’t complain) and sodas. Stiles even snuck through Laura’s cabinet to steal some of her Cosmic Brownies and Moonpies. Derek can’t understand why she would like those, but he keeps a supply of them for Stiles, ready to be eaten at a moment’s notice. 

It’s when Stiles passes by him that he catches a whiff of her scent. Rose and Vanilla. For some reason, it gets stuck on his mind the sweet and intense smell that reminds him of Stiles’ Mom. She used to have a perfume with that scent, and it smelled amazing. Somehow, that scent permutated onto Stiles and it’s been on her ever since he first noticed it. Huh, weird.

“Come on,” Stiles calls over her shoulder, “I’ve got to be home by midnight.”

***

There was a knock on his door, Derek opened it to see Stiles holding a large bag of kettle corn, a 2-liter bottle of soda, a grocery bag full of candy, and her pillow. He let her into his dorm room, leaving her to set up his bed while he chooses the movie they were going to watch. He decided on Avengers, the first one because he needed some nostalgia at the moment. 

“Dude, I know you hate it, but this calls for brandy,” Stiles announces, pulling out a bottle from her pillow. 

“Don’t call me dude,” Derek almost snapped.

He saw her flinch and it made him feel even worse than he was right now. Thankfully, she just brushed it off and opened the bottle.

“I’m just gonna say that Jen was a crazy psycho bitch that took advantage of you. What she did was shitty, and right now, you have every right to be pissed. Let’s get drunk and cry it out, okay?”

“Okay,” Derek agreed until he saw the Avengers: Endgame DVD in her hands. “Shit, you weren’t joking about the crying part.”

“Shut up and pretend Jennifer is Thanos for three hours, okay?” Stiles was firm, handing him the brandy and making herself comfortable in his bed.

Derek had no choice but to agree, taking his place next to her and snuggling up to her side. As soon as the movie started to play, they were already taking drinks from the brandy and stuffing their faces with kettle corn. The bottle was half empty by the time the idea of time travel came to mind. Stiles then paused the movie and started going off about all the things she would change if she could go back in time. 

She would rewrite history, save the dodo birds, prevent the creation of guns, etc. Stiles even talked about getting the chance to spend more time with her Mom, and Derek knew then that she was drunk. Stiles hardly ever talked about her Mom anymore so she couldn’t be talking about it now if she weren’t in her right mind. She was lightweight.

“And then, and then I would tell her I love her, because-” Stiles hiccuped, “because I didn’t. When I was little. I didn’t say ‘I love you’ before she died, and it kills me, dude. It fucking kills me.”

“I know,” Derek ran a hand through her hair. “Why don’t we have some soda? You’ve killed enough of your brain cells tonight.”

“Oh, god I love you,” Stiles slurred, wrapping her arms around his waist. 

Derek went stiff.

“I know I shouldn’t say it cuz it’d ruined everything’,” She mumbled, “But, I love you so much. “If I could go back in time, I would stop you from dating Jennifer, hell even Kate, cuz you deserve better than those bitches. You’re awesome and pretty, and amazing. You deserve all the cookies,” she giggled. “I love you so much.”

Stiles was drunk, she probably didn’t mean some of the things she said. Stiles was Stiles, after all. But, when he thought about it, she could mean that she loved him as a friend. They’ve had each other’s back since the diaper days. It wouldn’t be a surprise to him, but it was and it felt weird. The good kind of weird. 

He couldn’t imagine not watching movies with Stiles, that was their thing. So, maybe he should let this go. They were family, and nothing would change that. He couldn’t bring himself to ruin it with a small chance that they could be something more. For now, he’ll settle with what he has.

“Yeah,” Derek admitted, watching her as she passes out with her head on his shoulder. “Love you, too.”

Derek did cry in the end, not because of the movie. (Yeah, it was totally the movie- Shut up, Stiles!) And Stiles woke up not remembering what she said and Derek never brought it up again.

***

“So, you’re actually doing this.”

She said it like a statement, not a question. Derek let out a sigh, turning around to see Stiles leaning against one of the pillars inside the large industrial loft they share together. She was still dressed from her night out with Erica and Lydia, looking beyond pissed. He’d been hoping to be gone by the time Stiles came back from the party.

He still had his duffle bag in one hand, carelessly packed and filled to the brim with clothes, and his passport in the other.

Ever since he met Braeden, he just couldn’t help his impulsive decisions. She was so carefree and wild, Derek can understand that she was affecting his recklessness. But, she was the one. His soulmate. Derek knew it deep in his bones. Which is why he’s going to follow her across the country and be with her. Yes, it was crazy. Yes, it was idiotic. But, for Brae, he’d do anything.

“Yes, I am,” Derek was prepared for Stiles’ yelling. He was prepared to hear about all the reason why he shouldn’t go to New York. Beacon Hills was their home, their family lived here, and New York was the last place Stiles would want to go. So, if Derek wanted to run off she wasn’t going to follow him this time. 

He waited.

And waited.

And waited, but Stiles didn’t say anything. Instead, she just sighed, rubbing her hand over her face. 

“Aren’t… Aren’t you going to tell me not to go?” Derek didn’t like it when she was quiet. Stiles was a motor-mouth and could easily talk someone’s ear off, especially when she’s pissed. So, seeing her look so… resigned made him terrified.

“Why?” Stiles snapped, tears brimming her eyes. “You made up your mind, haven’t you? You’ll follow Braeden like a love-sick puppy dog. You don’t care about me, or your family.”

“What?” Derek felt gutted. “No, of course, I do.”

“Obviously, you don’t,” Stiles roughly rubbed at her eyes. “It was supposed to be us against the world, remember? You’ve got my back, I got yours? Now, you want to leave me here and move to the other side of the country because your girlfriend wants you to? Bullshit.”

“Sty…” Derek moved to hug her, but she put a hand against his chest to stop him.

“After my Dad died, you promised you wouldn’t leave me alone,” there was a tremble in her voice.

“Yeah-”

“And you’re breaking that promise,” she looked up and her eyes were cold. Still wet and glazed, but cold and distant. It was like the funeral all over again. “So, go Derek. Go be with Braeden if you love her so much. I don’t want you here.”

“Stiles,”

“GET THE FUCK OUT!” Stiles screamed.

He hesitated, but got his stuff and left. 

***

Derek felt empty after leaving Beacon Hills. He liked living in New York, sure, but it didn’t feel the same. It didn’t feel like home. 

He missed the smell of rose and vanilla. He missed kettle corn and moon pies. He missed curling up in bed and watching movies until he fell asleep. Braeden didn’t like doing those things. She was allergic to flowers, hated kettle corn and moon pies, and thought watching movies at the theater was better. She didn’t do those things with him.

Derek tried apologizing to Stiles, now realizing what a shitty move it was to make. Stiles had still been reeling from the death of her Dad. She needed him because she felt like her world was falling apart and needed Derek to keep her steady. To make her smile when she needed, or just be with each other on the bad days. He knew Stiles would always want him to be happy, but it was always Stiles and Derek first before anything else. And he just abandoned her because he thought he found his soulmate.

But, no matter how many times he called her, texted her, or even e-mailed her, she wouldn’t reply. So much so that whenever he would try to contact her, Scott would call him to tell him to back off. That Stiles didn’t want anything to do with him anymore. Derek knew he had been a shitty friend, but to be reminded every time made it hurt worse.

After living in New York for a year, Derek broke things off with Braeden and went back home. He was welcomed back by his family, by Erica, Boyd, and Isaac. When Scott saw him, he just turned around and went in the other direction. Lydia would pretend he wasn’t there if he tried to say ‘Hi’. Jackson just glared at him and turned away. Obviously, things weren’t okay back home.

He waited a couple of months before going to Stiles. She had moved to a small apartment across town from their old place. When she opened the door, she wasn’t too happy to see him.

“You’re back,” came her bland statement.

“Yeah…” Derek didn’t know what he was going to say, really. He was even surprised that Stiles opened the door at all. He took a deep breath and sighed. “Look, I’m sorry for leaving.”

Stiles just crossed her arms.

“It was shitty of me to do, and I’m sorry for hurting you when I didn’t mean to.”

Stiles’ gaze was brutal and Derek almost cracked under the pressure.

“But, I’m back now and I want to fix things. I want us to be best friends again, Stiles. Us against the world and everything.”

There was no response, she was still waiting.

“And…” Derek pulled his sleeve up and showed her his right arm. “Maybe we can be more than just best friends?” 

Stiles’ real name was scrawled in her messy handwriting on his wrist, just like a tattoo but more important.

Stiles’ face softened at the sight of it, but she was still hesitant. “When did you get that?”

“When I wanted to watch Black Panther 2 in bed, but you weren’t there to watch it with me,” Derek admitted. “I realized that I needed you there, because who else would argue with me or force me to eat moon pies if my theories turned out to be wrong. I… I needed my best friend, and I will always need you. Because you’re smart, and awesome, and amazing, and you deserve all the cookies.”

Stiles snorts.

“You are everything I’m not, and I want to be the same for you. I should have been, but I’ll promise I’ll do better. For you. For me. For us.”

Stiles sighed, then pulled down her own sleeve to show him his name on her wrist. Derek was amazed.

“When did you get that?”

“When you were leaving. I may have been a little selfish for not wanting you to go-,”

“I shouldn’t have gone, you were right about that.”

“And then I realized why I didn’t want you to leave. And, it didn’t have anything to do with my Dad or anything. It had to do with you leaving me, and I hated the idea. I didn’t want you to be where I wasn’t, because it didn’t feel right. I need you to be with me.”

“I won’t leave again,” Derek made sure his words were firm.

“Promise?”

Derek nods, “Promise.”


End file.
